1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to dispensing instruments and methods for introducing treatment material and fluid-like material into the uterus and canals of the fallopian tubes, and more particularly to a method in apparatus for the effecting of insemination. This
2. Prior Art
Specific delivery and application of a treatment medium such as spermatozoa, to an intrauterine locus, particularly for the successful insemination of an egg thereat, is an intended yet illusive goal of many in the medical field. Successful fertilization requires the maturation of spermatozoa in their transit through the uterus and oviducts to the ovum. The goal of the fertilization process, is to promote changes in the female reproductive tract and increase the ability of sperm to penetrate the egg, this effect being called capacitation.
The likelihood of such fertilization occurs, by the successful delivery of the spermatozoa and its association with the extracellular coating of the oval called the zone pellucid. Once a successful motile spermatozoon has fused with the egg membrane, fertilization has been completed. For this to occur, however, millions of spermatozoa must be successfully released so that one of them reaches the egg at the optimum time. This time window for such spermatozoa within the uterus, from introduction to fertilization, may extend in range over a twenty-four to a sixty hour period.
One approach for delivering material into the female uterus is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,182,328 to Bolduc et al. This patent shows a dispensing instrument utilizing a balloon which is inflated within the uterus. A piston and cylinder arrangement has a duct that extends through the balloon, which feeds the material to the uterus. The material is delivered over a short period of time and the balloon and probe are readily withdrawn thereafter. A further concept to Bolduc, is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,547,188 with a complicated housing and injector assembly with a conduit path through a balloon for treatment of a female uterus.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,654,025 to Cassou et al, discloses an insemination apparatus for animals, utilizing a flexible injector probe, having a plurality of expandable balloons one of each end thereof to facilitate injection of semen from a reservoir tube into the vaginal cavity of the animal. U.S. Pat. No. 5,104,377 to Levine et al, shows a device for accessing and introducing fluids into the female uterus. This device uses several spaced-apart balloons to securely couple the shaft to the uterus, adjusting to the length of the cervical canal. U.S. Pat. No. 5,372,584 to Zink et al, shows an apparatus for establishing access to the uterus and fallopian tubes of a female. An anchoring tube on the end of a flexible catheter is first inserted within the uterus. After such anchoring is completed, the elongated second catheter is arranged to extend through the first catheter and balloon and into the fallopian tubes. Injection of treatment into those fallopian tubes is thereby accomplished.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,562,654 to Smith et al, shows an arrangement for time-released delivery of a preparation into a uterine cavity. An osmotic pump is placed within the vagina of the female, having a delivery tube extending within the uterus. An anchoring balloon is disposed about the delivery tube within the uterus and is pressurized through a port which is pressurized through the vagina. Osmotic pressure gradually builds up within the osmotic chamber to pressurize an inner chamber to deliver material from the vagina to within the uterus through the delivery tube.
It is an object of the present invention, to overcome the limitations and objections of the prior art.
It is a further object of the present invention, to provide a unique method and apparatus for treatment of a mammalian uterus, in a safe and comfortable manner over an extended period of time, for optimization of the intended results.
It is still yet a further object of the present invention, to provide a method and apparatus for the fertilization of a human or animal female wherein unnecessary medical procedures are eliminated.